The business finance experts at money.co.uk business bank accounts have analysed ONS data about average hours worked and median average pay for a range of sectors to uncover the ones offering the best – and worst – hourly pay.
The accommodation and food service activities sector makes up a significant part of the UKโs economy, with the hospitality sectorโs annual economic contribution hitting ยฃ93 billion in 2023 and estimated to increase by another ยฃ29 billion by 2027.
Despite this, this industry’s workers have the lowest hourly pay rate. An average working week is around 26 hours long, and the average hourly pay is ยฃ12.39 – just 18 pence above the national living wage.
Businesses within the industry have faced a lot of financial hardship in recent years, with the COVID pandemic and National Insurance increases. This has made improving workers’ pay increasingly difficult while still making a profit, contributing to lower hourly rates in the sector.
The sector also ranked in the top 10 for the amount of overtime worked, with employees clocking an average of 2.8 hours of overtime per week.
Joe Phelan, money.co.uk business bank accounts expert, said, “Attracting and retaining high-quality talent doesnโt just come down to salary โ itโs also about meeting evolving expectations around working conditions. Todayโs employees are more willing to walk away from roles that donโt offer a healthy work-life balance or prioritise wellbeing. That means businesses need to offer more than just pay; they must create environments with manageable hours, flexibility, and genuine support.
“When companies get this right, they typically see lower staff turnover, higher engagement, and more consistent productivity, all of which feed into more stable operations and healthier cash flow. And with greater financial predictability comes the ability to plan and grow with confidence.”
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